The present application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/170,828, filed Oct. 13, 1998 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,321,281, in the name of Reiji Fujikawa and entitled POINTING DEVICE WITH A CONTROLLER USED FOR MONITORING A PROTOCOL SELECTOR SIGNAL DERIVED FROM A COMPUTER TO SELECT ONE OF A COMPATIBILITY FUNCTION AND AN ADDITIONAL FUNCTION and claims priority of Japanese Patent Application No. Hei-9-280717 filed on Oct. 14, 1997, both of which are herein incorporated by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a pointing device, a computer connectable with a pointing device, and a method for controlling a relationship between a computer and 10 such a pointing device. More specifically, the present invention is directed to such a novel pointing device capable of entering various input data indicative of characters, symbols, and functions while maintaining compatibility with presently available pointing devices.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, pointing devices are used in personal computer systems. One mouse input system in, for instance, Japanese Patent Laid-open Hei3-98109. The previously disclosed, mouse input system is capable of entering various input indicative of characters, symbols, and functions in response to cursor positions on the display screen, in addition to serving as a pointing device.
Precisely speaking, pointing device, when the position of the pointing device is changed, pulse signals are produced in response to the amount of change. The pulse signals are transferred directly to a personal computer through switches in the pointing device. As a consequence, the structure of this typical pointing device is made very simple. However, when the mouse input system proposed in the above-described Japanese Patent Laid-open Publication No. Hei3-98109 is applied to the above-explained typical pointing device, signal lines and connectors must be newly defined between the mouse system and the personal computer.
Also, when a new connector is introduced, the above pointing device is no longer connection-compatible with the main body of the personal computer. The mouse input system with new features is thus not compatible with the personal computer which has a standard connector.
The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and therefore, has an object to provide a novel pointing device equipped with a new function without requiring a new signal line. The requirement of a new connector between this pointing device and a main body of a personal computer is eliminated. Another object of the present invention is to provide a control method for controlling functions between a new function pointing device and a computer, while using pointing devices without having the new function.
To achieve the above-described objects, first aspect of the present invention, there pointing device comprising:
a pointing device operating unit for producing an operation signal every time the pointing device is operated:
a compatibility function signal producing circuit for producing a signal indicative of an original compatibility function of the pointing device in response to the operation signal produced from the pointing device operating unit;
an additional function signal producing circuit for changing the operation signal produced from the pointing device operating unit into a signal indicative of an additional function to thereby produce an additional function signal;
a selector for selectively supplying any one of the compatibility function signals produced from the compatibility function signal producing circuit and the additional function signal produced from the additional function signal producing circuit to a computer main body connectable to the pointing device; and
a controller for monitoring a protocol selector signal derived from the computer main body immediately after a power supply of the computer main body is turned ON, and for controlling the selector to selectively supply the additional function signal produced from the additional function signal producing circuit to the computer main body in such a way that the protocol selector signal satisfies a condition under which an operation mode is changed into an additional function mode where the additional function of the pointing device is executed.
Also, according to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pointing device in which the additional function signal producing circuit receives a command/data signal via the selector from the computer main body to analyze a command and data from the received command/data.
Also, according to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pointing device in which the command/data signal contains at least data defined by a move amount of the pointing device, a change of sensitivities of the pointing device, and a temporary stop of an information supply.
Also, according to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pointing device in which the pointing device is a mouse; and the additional function signal produced from the additional function signal producing circuit contains at least a mouse data signal, a mouse clock signal, and a CPU data signal.
Also, according to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a pointing device in which the protocol selector signal is connected via a resistor to the power supply of the computer main body.
Furthermore, according to a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for controlling a pointing device and a computer main body connectable with the pointing device comprising:
a step in which when the pointing device is connected to the computer main body, a protocol is transmitted/received between the pointing device and the computer by using an undefined signal line among signal lines of a connector for connecting the pointing device to the computer main body;
a step in which while transmitting/receiving the protocol, controllers employed in both the pointing device and the computer main body confirm states of the counterpart controllers; and
a step in which when such a confirmation is established that both the pointing device and the computer main body are capable of utilizing an additional function of the pointing device, an operation condition of the computer main body is brought into an additional function condition.
Also, according to a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a control method further comprising:
a step in which while a power supply of the computer main body is turned ON and/or reset so as to bring the computer main body into a waiting state, when the pointing device having the additional function is connected to the computer main body under waiting state, both the pointing device having the additional function and the computer main body are operated in an original compatibility mode thereof;
a step in which a protocol transmission/reception operation is carried out between a controller employed in the pointing device and another controller employed in the computer main body in order to check as to whether or not the additional function of the pointing device is usable; and
a step in which when a mode switching instruction is issued from a central control apparatus of the computer main body to both the controllers after both the controllers confirm that the additional function can be used, the operation modes of both the pointing device and the computer main body are switched into additional function modes.
Moreover, according to an eighth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer connectable with a pointing device comprising:
a central control apparatus for executing an original compatibility function of the pointing device upon receipt of an original compatibility function control signal, and for executing an additional function of the pointing device upon receipt of an additional function control signal;
an additional function control circuit for providing an additional function signal transmitted with pointing device control signal from the pointing device to thereby output the additional function control signal to the central control apparatus;
a compatibility function providing circuit for providing an original compatibility function signal transmitted with the pointing device control signal from the pointing device to thereby output the additional function control signal to the central control apparatus;
a selector for selectively supplying the pointing device control signal derived from the pointing device to the compatibility function providing circuit and the additional function control circuit; and
a controller for controlling a protocol selector signal transmitted/received between the computer controller and the pointing device in response to an instruction issued from the central control apparatus, and for transferring the controlled protocol selector signal to the central control apparatus and also for controlling the selector based upon the controlled protocol selector signal.
Also, according to a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a computer connectable with a pointing device, in which the controller controls the selector when a power supply of the computer is turned ON in such a manner that the selector outputs the pointing device control signal to the compatibility function providing circuit, whereby the pointing device is operated in an 10original compatibility function mode;
when the protocol selector signal is changed and thereafter the controller confirms that the additional function of the pointing device is usable, the controller notifies the confirmation to the central control apparatus; and
when an operation mode switching instruction is issued from the central control apparatus, the controller switches the operation mode of the pointing device into the additional
function mode by controlling the selector in response to the 20 protocol selector signal.
As a consequence, any pointing devices which do not possess new functionality may still be connected to the computer and operate compatibility.